Only thirty-one years have passed since the accident at the Chernobyl nuclear power plant. Over the years, the exclusion zone has remained practically uninhabited by people, but favorable conditions have developed here for the development of flora and fauna. How radiation affects animals and birds, scientists have not yet been able to establish, however, thanks to cameras, they recorded that many inhabitants appeared in the forests. There are lynxes, moose, wolves, giant bison and other animals, many of which have long been listed in the Red Book! 
Biologist Sergei Gashchak sets up a camera to monitor animals.
The idea to learn more about the fauna in the exclusion zone belongs to the Ukrainian scientist Serhiy Gashchak. His main job is to conduct radioecological research. At the same time, Sergey is fond of studying biology and zoology, now this has already become his separate area of scientific interests. 
The black stork is listed in the Red Book.
The Lesser Spotted Eagle is a rare bird.
Several years ago, Sergey bought and installed the first ten hidden cameras on his own, which record everything that is happening around the clock around the clock. The recording starts as soon as any warm-blooded creature approaches the camera at a distance of 10-15 meters. Due to the fact that filming can take place around the clock, Sergei Gashchak received not only photographs of animals, whose period of activity falls on the daytime, but also replenished the collection with interesting observations of the life of night forest dwellers. 
Cranes in the camera lens.
A lynx with a cub came to the river.
Bears have not lived in these forests for almost a century, now they are returning.
Local bambis.
Unfortunately, there is no adequate funding for projects to study the natural diversity of the Chernobyl area, so Sergei did a lot with his own funds. True, several years ago French scientists became interested in his research and agreed to assist the project. The allocated grant funds were used to purchase another four dozen so-called. "Camera traps". 
Elk and her two babies.
Deer willingly pose for the camera.
The camera recorded a bison.
Przewalski's horses in winter.
Over the past years, brown bears and black storks have returned to the forests, and the population of Przewalski's horses, which were brought here in the 1990s, has increased. In a word, the natural restoration of the animal world began. Since 2016, the territory has been assigned the status of a radiation-ecological biosphere reserve, now scientists are working here, it is planned to open a limited number of excursion routes over time. 
Photomontage: the size of a deer compared to the height of a person.
For 30 years, the flora and fauna of the exclusion zone began to recover.
Lynxes are well accustomed to the zone of ecological disaster.
The deer population numbers about 1.5 thousand individuals.
The Chernobyl exclusion zone is filled with wild animals. A wide variety of species are found here, which feel great in a radioactive environment.
After the accident at the Chernobyl nuclear power plant, animals in Chernobyl not only did not disappear, but, on the contrary, increased in their population.
This is due to the fact that hunting in the exclusion zone after the Chernobyl accident was prohibited. Animals live in a radioactive environment, feed on "dirty" food. Therefore, they themselves represent a radiation hazard to humans.
Scientists are still studying the effect of radiation on animals in the Chernobyl zone. For tracking animals, special camera traps are installed.
Photo: wolves attacking a deer in the Chernobyl zone:
As a result of the installation of such camera traps, scientists have many photos of the Animals of Chernobyl.
Are there animal mutants in Chernobyl?
No mutants were found in the exclusion zone. Except for the cases of mutation of animals, allegedly associated with radiation. But scientists failed to prove it. Animal mutants were born long before Chernobyl. But we have collected for you a few photos of mutants after Chernobyl.
A very interesting species of animals in Chernobyl is the Przewalski's horse.
The production of Przewalski's horses in the Chernobyl exclusion zone was carried out in accordance with the "Program for the creation of a free population", which was developed by the specialists of the "Askania-Nova" reserve. It was envisaged to keep animals in open-air cages in the Acclimatization Center created on the territory of the exclusion zone.
In May 1998, 22 Przewalski's horses were brought from the Askania-Nova reserve.
Horses still live in Chernobyl now.
The release of animals was carried out in 1999:
Animals in Chernobyl: life after a person leaves
Chernobyl animals feel calm without a person
Female deer in the exclusion zone:
Bears are very rare. They mainly live in the Belarusian exclusion zone. Although there were cases of bear penetration into the territory of the Ukrainian zone:
Raccoon dog:
Wolves live throughout the ChEZ. Animals do not come into contact with people, but scientists often find their tracks and hear howls in the dense forests of Chernobyl:
The wild boar population in the area has declined significantly over the past few years. These animals had one of the largest populations until 2013. Due to the invasion of the disease, the number of wild boars has decreased significantly.
A rare beast of Chernobyl is the lynx. She also does not contact people. Found in the most remote corners of the ChEZ:
Owl. One type of owl. Often found in the city of Pripyat and abandoned houses of the zone:
The most popular animal is the fox. One of them lives in Pripyat. And tourists call him Semyon. He is not afraid of people, he always runs out to the crowd and waits for treats. Semyon is very fond of cutlets and sausage:
Common gray hare:
Earlier studies in the 4,200 square kilometers (1,600 square miles) Chernobyl exclusion zone showed significant radiation effects and a pronounced decline in wildlife populations.
But new data, based on long-term census data, show that mammalian populations have bounced back.
Chernobyl: what kind of animals are there?
The study found a relative abundance of elk, roe deer, deer and wild boar - with population levels similar to those found in four designated and unpolluted nature reserves in the region. The number of wolves living in and around Chernobyl is more than seven times higher than in comparable reserves in non-zones.
And data from helicopter studies also show an increase in trends in abundance of elk, roe deer and wild boar 1-10 years after the accident.
“This unique data showing a wide range of animals thriving miles from a major nuclear accident illustrates the resilience of wildlife populations when they are relieved of the pressure on human shelter,” said Jim Beasley of the University of Georgia in the United States, who led the work.
Giant catfish mutants of Chernobyl
In the exclusion zone, fish have not been caught for more than a dozen years, which has a positive effect on the impact on the fish fauna of lakes and rivers.
The catfish in Chernobyl reaches enormous sizes. Due to the fact that in these areas the fish population does not interfere with humans, the catfish can gain more weight and grow up to 2 meters or more.
Large growth of catfish and changes in its diet, because for such a giant fish, more nutrients need to be consumed in food. Consumption - birds and mammals. People in Chernobyl are not afraid of catfish, because they are not so dangerous for people. According to some rumors, catfish in Chernobyl are not averse to using for food and people.
Is there fishing in Chernobyl?
Since fishing is officially prohibited in Chernobyl and Pripyat, the catfish has the ability to grow for many years. In ordinary reservoirs, fish are caught, and it does not have time to reach large sizes.
But it is worth noting that the fish in the Chernobyl zone is saturated with harmful radionuclides, and it is extremely dangerous to eat it.
The same cooling pond in which live "mutants"
Photo by Nikolay Onishchenko:
Catfish swims peacefully in the water:
Photo by Nikolay Onishchenko: 
The fish is used to being fed bread by tourists.
Photo by Nikolay Onishchenko:
And here's the treat :)
Photo by Nikolay Onishchenko: 
Everyone wondered if there were mutants in Chernobyl. Since the accident at the Chernobyl nuclear power plant, the zone has been overgrown with thousands of legends that frighten with the most incredible stories about terrible mutant zombies living in the vastness of radioactive lands. But is it true?
On April 26, 1986, an explosion occurred at the Chernobyl nuclear power plant, scattering life-threatening radionuclides over hundreds (or even thousands) of kilometers, soiling the ground for many years.
The accident killed hundreds of people, thousands fell ill with oncology ..
Radiation and wildlife were not spared. In the early years, small mutations were observed in newborn animals and humans:
An animal with twisted limbs from birth: 
Piglet: 
Sick calf: 
Sick child:
A human embryo frozen in the womb:
The radiation also affected the trees especially sharply. Everyone remembers the "Red Forest", which completely turned yellow after the accident, having absorbed a large amount of radionuclides. The forest died, but new trees grew in its place, with small mutations:
Plants mutants of Chernobyl
To this day, scientists are studying the effects of radiation and pollution on nature, animals, birds and plants.
(17
estimates, average: 4,82
out of 5)
Thirty years have passed since the terrible tragedy (the accident occurred on April 26, 1986). Every year, various researchers, forwarders, extreme lovers and tourists travel to the exclusion zone to personally capture this area in their memory: to wander around the forgotten city, to see how the wild animals of Chernobyl look and behave, to feel the loneliness caused by the prohibitive amount of radiation.
After returning from this place, everyone's opinions differ and everyone, especially tourists, is trying to tell their story of what is happening there today. Only scientists can argue about the situation in Pripyat, but ordinary tourists say that after all, animals from Chernobyl have noticeable even visually distinctive mutation features. Many even say that they saw with their own eyes that the animals of Chernobyl have greatly mutated and now they look little like ordinary ones. But are the animals of Chernobyl really so different from their relatives in other territories? Let's talk more about these myths.
Due to the large amount of emissions of radioactive substances into the atmosphere after a terrible accident, more than 116 thousand of the local population were evacuated. Animals were the least thought of at that time. As a result, the animals of Chernobyl became completely free from humans.
The area of more than 4200 square kilometers was at the complete disposal of the animal world. Chernobyl animals have become completely independent of human influence. After the explosion and the departure of people due to exposure to radiation and the risk of mutations, the animals of the Chernobyl zone gained complete freedom and now there are much more of them than there were before the accident at the nuclear power plant.
As time has shown, wild animals are on the verge of extinction precisely because of the human factor, and radiation itself has a much smaller effect than humans. Today, almost all animals in Chernobyl, photos of which you can find on our website, have increased their numbers.
At the moment, after thirty years of freedom, the animals in Chernobyl, who live in the most closed zone for visiting and living, live for their own pleasure. They are not afraid of people, and nature itself has become a natural reserve with real wildlife.
Scientists have previously reported about a large animal and plant diversity, but they have always drawn conclusions only on the basis of facts. Scientists hoped that the population of such unique objects as animals from Chernobyl would become clear by the number and nature of their tracks. But to date, our scientists have not only been able to conduct a simple examination on the tracks of animals.
Advances in technology have made it possible to install hidden cameras in the Red Forest, where mostly local animals live. Thanks to this, it became possible to take a photo of the Chernobyl animals and find out how badly the Chernobyl animals were exposed to radiation and whether the increased radiation background affected their appearance.
What the research says
He suffered the most from the consequences of the Chernobyl accident. The second place in terms of contamination with radioactive substances with a large number of wild animals is the Polesie radiation-ecological reserve, located on the territory of Belarus.
American scientists from the University of Georgia decided to independently conduct research on the animal world in areas contaminated with radiation. They were the first to install cameras on the territory of the reserve. Three dozen digital cameras provided a viewing area of over 2,100 square kilometers. The cameras worked around the clock in order not to lose sight of even the smallest representatives of the animal world.
In order to attract animals to the cameras and examine them in more detail, scientists have resorted to one rather simple trick: disguise. Since the animals are scared away by unfamiliar objects, the cameras were hidden under the bark of trees, covered with sheets, and also smeared with fat, which attracts wild animals.
After all the data from the video cameras were obtained, the scientists documented all the animals that appeared in the frame, their number and the regularity of their appearance. The scientists published their research, and most importantly, the results in a local publishing house. The results of the study showed that radiation affects the animal much less than humans.
During the period of time when the video cameras were working, fourteen species of animals were seen. All animals seen in the Belarusian reserve also live in the Chernobyl Red Forest.
From all the studies, even outside the Chernobyl nuclear power plant and the exclusion zone, it became clear that all animals feel much better without human intervention and their population is growing. Radiation practically does not bother them, even though, because of this dangerous and fatal radiation, they live less and produce offspring several times less. By the totality of all factors, it turns out that radiation is still less dangerous for all types of animals.
How have the animals of Chernobyl changed? Are there any photos of Chernobyl animals?
To date, a fairly large number of radiological researchers, biologists and ordinary tourists have visited the Exclusion Zone. Each had their own reasons. Some went to the contaminated territory for scientific discoveries, others to confirm past research. Someone put themselves at risk in order to penetrate this topic and visit a frightening, but at the same time attracting with its mystery and wildness of the area.
Now, neither in reality, nor in the photo of animals in Chernobyl, there are practically no signs of animal mutation. Animals that received the maximum dose of radiation died thirty years later, and new ones were born without obvious external deviations. Now the animals of Chernobyl, the photo of which has a completely natural look, do not surprise or frighten anyone.
The only noticeable mutation that remains in feathered animals (namely swallows) is the unnatural color of the feathers. But these are clearly not two heads or two pairs of wings as many thought. Naturally, all animals living on the territory of a 30-kilometer zone in the body have exceeded the permissible dose of radiation dozens of times, but let's not forget that these are still the animals of Chernobyl.
Famous photos of animals from Chernobyl prove that most of the animals have not received any changes. It is worth paying attention to the fact that after the explosion, tons of radioactive elements were thrown into the air, which later turned into radioactive dust. This dangerous dust was all over the Exclusion Zone, due to which the animals of Chernobyl underwent mutations.
Various changes were recorded by scientists, which affected not only animals, but also plants. For example, dwarfism and gigantism were popular mutations. In plants, such changes were noticed, such as the appearance of incomprehensible growths and glow.
IT'S IMPORTANT TO KNOW:
Who lives in the Exclusion Zone?
As mentioned earlier, only when entering this mysterious area can we meet animals of extraordinary beauty, and animals from Chernobyl do not differ in any special changes. It is thanks to the wild, free animals that have not been subjected to human influence that this area seems to be a new, completely unknown world with its magical nature.
Today, the animals of Chernobyl are represented by a large number of species. Among them are majestic and graceful deer, elk, angry wild boars and gentle roe deer. In winter, on the snow-covered fields, you can see fresh tracks of a lynx or see a real hunt of a gray wolf.
As in any other forest, in the Chernobyl Exclusion Zone there are not only the animals of Chernobyl, but also the family of birds. Herons rest on the newly formed swamps, swans and ducks gracefully swim. The most unusual and surprising fact of the living nature of that area is black cranes, which are now quite rare and have become a real miracle for Ukraine.
What is it - a living "dead zone"?
For all the time, no one in Chernobyl was able to capture a more extreme creature - a zombie. The fact is that mutated Chernobyl animals, photos of which appeared after the first expeditions to this territory, mostly died. Mutations were incompatible with the life of animals: mutated animals became easy prey for predators. In addition, the majority of animals in the Chernobyl region, as the examinations show, did not undergo mutation under the influence of isotopes.
The Chernobyl zone remains unsuitable for human life. There, to this day, a high radiation background has been preserved, which does not allow a person to live safely. Thanks to this, animals can live and develop in peace. And this fact allows the populations of each species to expand - to expand in the reserve that they could not have dreamed of 50 years ago. After all, it was a real industrial city, developing at a rapid pace.
Scientists were able to calculate the exact number of species of animals and birds living in the territory prohibited for people. It turned out that in the dangerous Red Forest they found a comfortable place to live and such unusual animals for that area as bears, badgers, bison, lynxes, otters.
The most interesting specimen is an unusually beautiful and rare horse breed like the Przewalski's horse. It was they who were brought to seemingly unsuitable land for life, on purpose. If we talk about the birds that remained in the Chernobyl zone, there are much more of them than mammals. After the last studies were completed, it became clear that a total of 61 species of rare birds live in the infected zone.
Note that mainly wild animals and birds survived in Chernobyl. All livestock, domestic animals and other living organisms, accustomed to living in harmony with humans, could not adapt to life without the care of people and soon disappeared from this wilderness. Even such popular birds as pigeons do not live in the Chernobyl zone. Here you can really miss the civilization, people and the daily hustle and bustle of cities and villages.
The other side of Chernobyl
Chernobyl today and the 30-kilometer zone around it are the most contaminated place with radioactive substances and elements. A person without special protection is not able to adapt to life here. We do not consider those people who have become an exception, because there are so few of them that there are not even 50 people.
For animals, the absence of people had the best effect, because human activity, together with the development of industry, poisons living nature. Even if we exclude such a fact as poaching, a person poisons living organisms with various pesticides, car exhaust gases and other problems.
Also, the animals of Chernobyl were able to feel completely safe. After all, with the departure of people, deforestation, plowing of land, construction, industrial and land work ceased. Thanks to all this, animals that have not appeared in this area for more than one century (or were on the verge of extinction) were able to develop.
After 30 years, animals have not only adapted to the radiation conditions, but are developing, living not only in the forest, but also in an abandoned city. This is what creates a kind of uniqueness and originality of this area: the city is full of various buildings with plants breaking through the walls and animals walking freely.
In the Chernobyl zone, a unique ecosystem was able to emerge, where, as mentioned earlier, everything that required human attention and supervision became extinct and only real wildlife remained. Now even very rare bats for Ukraine live in Chernobyl, which have not appeared on the territory of Ukraine for half a century, and this is really amazing.
Many animals listed in the Red Book of Ukraine were able to adapt to radiation, which practically does not interfere with them. Bison, foxes, beavers, otters, roe deer, muskrats, Przewalski's horses and other really rare animals now live in a territory free from people. Due to the fact that hunting stopped, for the first time in a hundred years, such rare animals as bears and lynxes were able to appear.
The problems with the availability of food do not bother such a huge number of animals: a wide variety of insects, reptiles and a huge number of large fish does not allow even the largest animals to die out.
Pets in Chernobyl
It is worth noting that in this area there are seemingly domestic animals like cats. Now there are not so many of them in the restricted area, but they still managed to adapt. Initially, people left and did not think at all about how their favorites would survive. Seals first waited for their owners, who were supposed to feed them and “nip” them. But after a while, the rather hungry animals realized that they themselves need to look for food for themselves.
At first, pets were shot on the assumption that loneliness would lead to rabies, which would lead to infection of other animals. This went on for some time. Until the settlements near the territories lying to Chernobyl began to be destroyed by such pests as mice and rats. Only after that did the fighters come to their senses and stopped shooting. Many cats were killed or died on their own because it was quite difficult for domestic cats to adapt to such conditions and radiation. Now these animals can hardly be called pets: these cats are afraid of people (tourists) and do not approach, but they are friends with other animals.
Fauna and civilization
Thirty years have passed since the accident. During this time, the territory, unsuitable for human life, was able to "shelter" a huge number of different living beings. These are not some kind of radiation mutants, but full-fledged animals that live, feed and breed both in the city and in the forest. Yes, because of radiation substances, animals live less and their offspring are fewer. But even despite these factors, animals and birds were able to live and develop. Even those animals that were specially brought to this area were able to survive and develop.
Today it is a natural reserve, which has only one drawback - increased radiation. People who have ceased to interfere with this world allow these animals to exist. From all that is happening, the conclusion suggests itself that no radiation substances are capable of so much harm to nature as a person and his life.
Mutant animals of Chernobyl. Photo. Panoramas of Chernobyl.
Many reports of deformed and strange animals near Chernobyl can be found all over the Internet, indicating that radiation is having a profound effect on animal populations.
Of course, some serious mutations were noticed immediately after the accident. Modern animals, however, generally do well, although their internal radiation levels are higher than most.
They do not suffer from significant genetic mutations, although some species have problems.
For example, some birds have developed smaller brains, and some rodents have reduced droppings or lived less long.
In fact, animal populations seem to be doing better now than they used to be when people were farming there.
However, scientists continue to debate what the long-term effects of exposure will be for the animals that live there.
A scientific approach to mutation
After the Chernobyl accident, the number of changes in the somatic cells of humans and animals has clearly increased. Moreover, this happened not only in the Chernobyl zone, but in other regions.
It has not been reliably identified with what this is connected. Irradiation can affect somatic cells in two ways:
- Increase the frequency of changes in somatic cells
- Slow down the body's defense system aimed at eliminating such changes.
Nature has a variety of selection systems, they work very efficiently. Such systems fight against mutations that arise in the germ cells, and that is why these mutations are so difficult to fix.
Scientists in Ukraine have found an increase in mortality in laboratory mice that were exposed to radiation in the ChNPP exclusion area, at the very initial stage of embryo formation and before its implantation into the uterus.
As a result of the cultivation of early embryos that were obtained from irradiated mice, it was found that in some experimental subjects, the periods of egg cleavage were delayed.
It is reliably known that cell division can be delayed due to damage in the genetic material.
Perhaps for this reason, it is at an early stage of development that the death of embryos that carry mutations occurs.
Such a protective system of the body could also work in the case of people with mutants of Chernobyl, they simply were not born, although no one recorded spontaneous miscarriages in pregnant women of that period.
If miscarriages have occurred, they have occurred, most likely, because:
- gametes are not created from premeiotic damaged cells
- embryos with these cells die in the early stages of division
- the cells turn out to be incapable of implantation.
Radiation affects heredity, intense radiation exposure can be used for forced sterilization.
Everyone knows that radiation initiates mutations, but the development of these mutations has only a theoretical background:
- radiation is far from the only mutagen, so it makes no sense to blame only it. The properties of a mutagen are possessed by many chemical elements, of which the most famous and widespread is ethyl alcohol, the term “drunken conception” is widespread among physicians.
- scientists have not fully studied how much the probability of mutation depends on the intensity and total dose of radiation.
- it is not known how mutations are expressed at the phenotype level. After all, the number of mutagens is so great that each damage to the genome would lead to congenital deformity.
From all this reasoning, we can conclude that, in fact, no scientist has created or proven the theory of the very occurrence of mutation at the level of the phenotype, mutations arise.
The development of this issue would allow humanity to avoid not only the consequences, but also diseases developing at the genetic level - down syndrome, autism, etc., because these diseases, or rather the cause of their occurrence, is not known.
It is known for sure that everything that happened is associated with damage to the genome itself, but what is characteristic of this connection is still a mystery.
Within the framework of scientific research, no matter how sad the Chernobyl exclusion zone may be, it is possible to consider it as a natural big experiment, which may give an impetus to many scientific discoveries.
Fish are mutants of Chernobyl. Photo
Animals are mutants of Chernobyl. Photo
As soon as the forced evacuation of about 336,000 people was completed (in fact, about 300 people did not evacuate and continue to live in the contaminated area), it became a kind of desert.
In the short term, nothing really flourished. Gradually, researchers dared to collect data and discovered growing populations of flora and fauna.
Obviously, most of the images on the Internet are fakes - either not from Chernobyl, or from video games, movies, photoshop, or completely unrelated.
However, some mutations have occurred:
On farms in the Narodichsky region of Ukraine, for example, in the first four years after the accident, about 350 animals were born with gross deformities, such as missing or extra limbs, missing eyes, heads, ribs or deformed skulls.
Take, for example, the piglet in the photo that has suffered a severe congenital deformity called dipigus.
Yes, these are additional limbs on the back ... it looks like something like an insect ...
In 1986, terrible news thundered all over the world - there was an explosion at a nuclear power plant. This event, which took place at the Chernobyl nuclear power plant, built near the cities of Pripyat and Chernobyl, greatly changed the lives of people.
A huge mass of radiation was thrown into the air, affecting all life in its path. This accident became a real tragedy on a global scale, the echoes of which remind of themselves to this day, after many decades. Not only people suffered from the disaster, but also the animals of Chernobyl. True, during the evacuation, few people thought about them.
Fauna of Chernobyl today
At present, despite the complexity of the situation of radioactive contamination, the animals of Chernobyl are slowly filling the empty places.
Over the years that have passed since the disaster, the area around the station has turned into a natural reserve. As it turned out, radiation is not as terrible for animals as for humans. In the absence of the most terrible predator, the animal species living here have increased their numbers.
For many years, scientists have talked about the diversity of the animal world in the vicinity of the Chernobyl nuclear power plant. Previously, the counting of individuals was carried out according to the traces left, but now biologists were able to see how many representatives of the fauna live in these parts, using the installed cameras.
Surveillance
Scientists from the University of Georgia have installed 30 cameras on the territory of the Polesie Radiation-Ecological Reserve. Scientists have recorded dozens of species. These are wild boars, badgers, martens, bison, wolves, foxes, etc. All these representatives of the animal world were found everywhere, even in the most infected areas of the reserve.
In the absence of man, the animals of Chernobyl feel great. Although biologists say that due to the high level of radiation, fewer offspring are born, and the lifespan of individuals has decreased, but this does not prevent them from settling in the danger zone.
Experiment of the last century
An experiment of the 90s became an indicator that animals are not as afraid of radiation as humans. At that time, scientists conducted an experiment on the effects of radiation on animals. Przewalski's horses were brought to the radiation zone for study. They not only survived in extreme conditions, but also multiplied. In the exclusion zone, there are animals listed in the Red Book.
According to some scientists, animals began to return to the territory abandoned by people in the same 1986 year. The largest share of radiation in those years fell on pine forests, which were located next to the power plant. The vegetation gradually began to recover, although a lot of radiation accumulated in the trees: it is dangerous during a long stay of a person in the forests, but does not prevent wild animals from gradually returning to the territory.
Five years after the tragedy, a "reset" took place in the accident zone, which made it possible to increase the number of living species of animals. Now more than 400 species of vertebrates live in these parts, about four thousand varieties of plants grow. The local forests are home to deer, brown bears, moose, which have not appeared in this area for over a hundred years.
Also, 19 rare species of birds and animals live in the accident zone, including owls, eagles, storks, otters, lynxes, and badgers.
Scientists have found that the animals of Chernobyl are not only not afraid of radiation, but also enter Pripyat. Sometimes they settle in abandoned buildings. The living creatures feed on fruits from local gardens, once planted by people.
Mutations
Periodically, scientists make catches of animals to conduct possible studies for the presence of anomalies that are common in these parts. But this does not have a strong effect on the population and number of animals. As scientists say, in Chernobyl, animal mutants are most often represented by albinos, other types of mutations are less common.
The explosion at the power plant released a huge amount of radiation. Most of it ended up in the Red Forest and the Pripyat River. In these places, mutants are most common. Catfish with a length of two or more meters began to be found in the reservoir, and terrible mutant animals of Chernobyl appeared in the forests. They are not only several times larger than their counterparts, but also gave birth to mutating offspring with two heads, three pairs of legs, and an altered jaw structure. And these are not all the mutations of those times.
Mutations today
Today, such changes are less and less common. The bulk of the fauna are quite normal individuals, practically no different from those that live in other countries of the world. Although their lifespan is shorter, and fewer young are born in litters, there are more representatives of the animal world.
Myths
Recently, photos of mutant animals of Chernobyl began to appear on the Web. Rumors began to circulate about Chernobyl killer wolves, mutating horses, and terrorist eagles. In fact, these are all solid myths.
Those individuals that are shown in the photo are mutant animals of Chernobyl, even if they existed, they did not live long. The high level of radiation caused radiation sickness and oncology not only in humans, but the fauna also suffered.
However, according to the observations of scientists, two years after the accident, nature began to change. In those places where people lived, new species of animals began to appear, and some representatives disappeared altogether. But this did not prevent new species from settling. A lynx appeared in these parts, the number of which now reaches fifty. Here you can meet bears, eagles, bison. The number of the latter is growing.
The animals of Chernobyl and the birds living here, fixed in the photo, impress with their diversity. Owls settled in these parts. They nest exclusively in abandoned buildings.
In the exclusion zone, they found a species from the Red Book - a great spotted eagle. So far, scientists have counted several pairs of this representative, but this information is not final and scientists continue to analyze nature.
The number of species such as house sparrows, hooded crows, pigeons, mice and rats has declined sharply. The white storks have completely disappeared.
As you can see from the photo, animals after Chernobyl live in these places and reproduce, moreover, they captured abandoned settlements. On empty streets, overgrown villages, you can meet deer, and in the houses you can hear the talk of an owl. Those birds that once lived near a person almost all died from radiation, and those that managed to survive were almost exterminated by the eagle.
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